Ranking the Last 25 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Winners

Every year there is a player in college basketball that dominates the competition. However, people often wonder how great players would stack up against players of a different year.

This list is meant to rank each player that has won the Naismith Player of the Year award in college basketball of the last 25 years. 

A note: The players on this list are ranked solely on the year that they won player of the year honors and not on their entire collegiate career.

25. T.J. Ford (2003)

T.J. Ford had a very good sophomore season for the Longhorns, and helped the team to the Final Four where they would lose to the eventual champion, Syracuse. 

Ford averaged 15 points and nearly eight assists en route to Naismith Player of the Year honors. 

24. Joe Smith (1995)

Joe Smith is another player who won the player of the year award during his sophomore campaign. Smith led Maryland to the Sweet 16, and was selected No. 1 overall in the 1995 NBA draft by the the Golden State Warriors.

Smith averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds during the 1995 NCAA basketball season.

23. Kenyon Martin (2000)

Kenyon Martin had an outstanding senior season for the Cincinnati Bearcats. Martin led the Bearcats to a No. 2 seed out of Conference USA. Martin was later selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the New Jersey Nets in the 2000 NBA draft.

Martin averaged 18.9 points and 9.7 rebounds during his senior season.

22. Calbert Cheaney (1993)

Calbert Chaney is one player in a long line of greats to play for the Indiana Hoosiers. Chaney led the Hoosiers to the Elite Eight in his senior season.

Chaney averaged 22 points and six rebounds on his way to the Naismith Player of the Year award.

21. Elton Brand (1999)

Elton Brand was a flat out star during his time at Duke. Brand led the Blue Devils to the 1999 NCAA championship game, where they were upset by Connecticut. 

Brand decided to leave Duke following his sophomore season to enter the NBA draft, where he was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Chicago Bulls.

Brand averaged 17.7 points and 9.8 rebounds during his sophomore season.

20. Andrew Bogut (2005)

Andrew Bogut is yet another sophomore that received Naismith Player of the Year honors. Bogut led Utah to the 2005 Sweet Sixteen.

Bogut followed the path of many of the others who had great sophomore years by declaring for the draft and being selected first-overall by the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Bogut averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds during his sophomore season.

19. Jameer Nelson (2004)

Jameer Nelson led one of the most improbable seasons in recent memory. St. Joseph's University is a mid-major Atlantic-10 school that received the No. 1 overall seed in the 2004 NCAA tournament.

Nelson led the Hawks to the Elite Eight where they suffered a heartbreaking loss to Oklahoma State.

Nelson averaged 20 points and five assists during his senior campaign. 

18. Anthony Davis (2012)

Anthony Davis was flat out dominant during his one season with the Kentucky Wildcats. Although his offensive numbers don't standout among past Naismith award winners, his defense is what really separates him from the seven players ranked behind him.

Davis had the fourth-most blocks in a single season in the history of college basketball with 186. In addition, Davis led the Wildcats to the 2012 NCAA championship in just his freshman season.

Davis declared to the draft a few months after winning that championship, and was selected first in the 2012 NBA draft by the New Orleans Hornets.

Davis averaged 14.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 4.7 blocks per game during his freshman season.

17. Marcus Camby (1996)

Marcus Camby led mid-major Massachusetts to the 1996 NCAA Final Four. UMass would later forfeit that Final Four, because the NCAA found that Camby received improper benefits. Still, Camby was an absolute beast during his college career.

Camby averaged 20 points, eight rebounds, and nearly four blocks per game during his junior season.

16. Antawn Jamison (1998)

Antawn Jamison led the North Carolina Tar Heels to the Final Four in 1998, where they lost to Utah. Jamison's junior season forever propelled him into the pantheon of Tar Heel greats.

Jamison averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds per game during his junior season.

15. Evan Turner (2010)

Evan Turner had an incredible junior season for the Ohio State Buckeyes. Not only did Turner put up ridiculous numbers, but he recovered from back surgery one month sooner than doctors projected. 

Turner also recorded the Big Ten's first triple-double in nearly nine years. Turner finished the season first in the Big Ten in scoring and second in rebounds—as a shooting guard.

Turner finished the season averaging 20 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and nearly two steals per game during his junior year.

14. Danny Ferry (1989)

The current general manger of the Atlanta Hawks had a great career for the Duke Blue Devils. Ferry led the Blue Devils to three Final Fours during his four-year career at Duke. However, the Blue Devils came up short in all three of those Final Four appearances. 

Ferry averaged 22 points and seven rebounds during his player of the year award-winning senior season.

13. Jason Williams (2002)

Jason, or Jay, Williams helped the Duke Blue Devils to the 2001 NCAA championship as a sophomore, and elected to return for his junior season. In fact, his best season at Duke was his sophomore season, even though he won the Naismith award as a junior.

During Williams' junior season he averaged 21 points and five assists en route to becoming the 2002 Naismith award winner.

12. Larry Johnson (1991)

Larry Johnson was the leader of two of the greatest teams in college basketball history. His 1990 UNLV team went on to win the NCAA championship game by defeating Duke by 30 points. 

Johnson returned for the 1991 season, where he led UNLV to a perfect regular season before being upset by Duke in the Final Four.

Johnson averaged 22.7 points and 10.9 rebounds for the Runnin' Rebels.

11. Shane Battier (2001)

Shane Battier is one of the greatest college basketball players of all-time. His defense, knowledge of the game, and leadership was second-to-none, while he played for the Blue Devils. 

Although Battier's numbers don't jump out at you like some of the other guys on this list, his defensive prowess makes him one of the best Naismith award winners in the last 25 years.

Battier averaged 19.9 points and 7.3 rebounds during his senior season for the Blue Devils.

10. Tyler Hansbrough (2008)

Tyler Hansbrough will always be remembered as one of the greatest college basketball players to ever step on the court. Hansbrough is the all-time leading scorer in ACC history, and received national player of the year honors in his junior year with the Tar Heels. 

After his fantastic junior season, Hansbrough went on to win the national championship during his senior campaign with the Tar Heels.

Hansbrough averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds during his junior season with North Carolina.

9. Blake Griffin (2009)

Blake Griffin is one of the best young stars in the NBA today. However, Griffin was even more dominate during his time at Oklahoma. 

Blake led the Sooners to the Elite Eight during his sophomore season, losing to eventual champion North Carolina.

After his sophomore season Griffin declared for the NBA draft and was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Los Angeles Clippers. 

Griffin averaged 22 points and 14 rebounds during his sophomore season.

8. Christian Laettner (1992)

Christian Laettner will always be remembered for his game winning, turn around shot against Kentucky in the 1992 NCAA regional final. That shot allowed Duke to move on to the Final Four, and eventually win the school's second-consecutive national championship.

Laettner was an absolute beast during his senior year averaging 21.5 points and 7.9 rebounds for the Blue Devils.

7. Tim Duncan (1997)

Tim Duncan is one of the greatest basketball players ever. Duncan was a fantastic college player, who got better every year that he stayed in college.

Although Duncan could have turned pro early, he decided to pursue his degree and proved to others that college is a valuable tool for a young player's development.

Duncan dominated his opponents during his senior season, averaging 20.8 points and 14.7 rebounds per game.

6. Lionel Simmons (1990)

Lionel Simmons was a force to be reckoned with during his four-year career with the La Salle Explorers. Simmons still stands as the third-leading scorer in NCAA history, and Simmons is also the only player to ever score over 3,000 points and haul in over 1,100 rebounds in a career. 

Simmons averaged 26.5 points and 11.1 rebounds during his senior season.

5. Kevin Durant (2007)

Kevin Durant had the best freshman season in recent memory. Durant became the first freshman to receive the Naismith award—deservedly so. Durant was a one-of-a-kind small forward because of his length. Durant was 6'9'' and had a 7'4'' wingspan, which is absurd for a small forward, who also shot 40 percent from three for the Longhorns.

Unfortunately for college basketball fans Durant left Texas after his freshman season and was selected with the second-overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Seattle Supersonics.

Durant averaged 25.8 points and 11.1 rebounds per game in his lone season with the Longhorns.

4. Danny Manning (1988)

Danny Manning is considered as one of the greatest players in Kansas basketball history. Manning led the Jayhawks to their second national championship in 1988 when Kansas was just a six seed entering competition.

Manning had one of the greatest all-time performances in the 1988 NCAA championship game; recording 31 points, 18 rebounds, and five steals. 

Manning averaged 24.8 points and nine rebounds during his final season with the Jayhawks.

3. J.J. Redick (2006)

J.J. Redick is one of the greatest scorers in the history of college basketball. Redick's shooting was lights-out and propelled him to be the Naismith Player of the Year in 2006. At the time of his graduation, Redick was the ACC's all-time leading scorer. 

Redick still stands as the NCAA career leader in three pointers made with 457.

Redick averaged 26.8 points during his senior season. He also shot 42 percent from three on 643 attempts in his final season at Duke.

2. Jimmer Fredette (2011)

Jimmer Fredette's incredible play created a phenomenon around him throughout his senior season at BYU. In fact, Fredette was not even allowed to attend classes during a portion of his senior year, because he was too much of a distraction to other students.

Fredette finished his senior season averaging 28.9 points and 4.3 assists per game.

1. Glenn Robinson (1994)

Glenn Robinson was the most dominant Naismith winner in the last 25 years. After a red-shirted freshman year, Robinson had two extremely successful years at Purdue.

Robinson led the nation in scoring, while also leading the Big Ten in rebounds during his junior year. Robinson also holds the Big Ten record for most points in a single season.

Robinson may not be remembered as well as some of the guys that are below him on this list because of his NBA career, but he did have the greatest single season in the last 25 years of college basketball.

Robinson averaged an incredible 30.3 points and 10.1 rebounds per game for the Boilermakers during his junior season.